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Surging student enrolment could spell trouble next fall for the city’s public school board if the Alberta government rejects a proposal for 28 new modular classrooms. An initial count from the Calgary Board of Education shows 3,709 new kids entered the city’s already bloated classrooms in September, with significant growth (2,728 kids) in Grades 1 to 6, boosting total enrolment to 114,472.

The Alberta Liberals accused the government Friday of neglecting a massive $1.5-billion maintenance backlog at K-12 schools and post-secondary institutes across the province. The Liberals obtained the figures through a Freedom of Information request, which shows deferred maintenance for K-12 schools is nearly $852 million, while post-secondaries have a combined backlog of $660.4 million.

Rebuilding and reinforcing flood-ravaged Elbow Park School to withstand a 1-in-500 year deluge and retain its historic brick facade will now cost an estimated $16.5 million, according to the city’s public school board. A draft concept depicting the existing school facade and more modern upgrades was unveiled during an open house at the Calgary Board of Education’s downtown headquarters this week.

The city’s public school board hopes to start modernizing or rebuilding five schools before 2015, after selecting the architects and engineers that will oversee the projects. Announced by the province three months ago, the Calgary Board of Education announced Thursday it has selected the consultants who will design upgrades for Harold W. Riley elementary school, Bowness High School and Jack James High School, plus rebuild Christine Meikle School and the flood-damaged facility in Elbow Park.

Calgary Transit’s latest hiring campaign could trigger a school bus driver shortage for the city’s two largest school boards. The city’s transit department needs to find new operators to fill gaps created by attrition and additional service hours.

Trustees at Calgary’s public school board approved a controversial bid to rebuild a school heavily damaged by June’s flood, but taxpayers will have to wait months to learn how much the project will cost. Sheila Taylor, chairwoman of the Calgary Board of Education, said the provincial government had already promised a school to Elbow Park residents, and that trustees were faced with deciding to restore the existing school or build anew.

It’s unknown when students from Willow Park School will return to their classrooms after a fire severely damaged the building earlier this week. In an update to parents, the Calgary Board of Education said the northeast corner of the school requires “significant” repair. One classroom is completely gutted and three adjacent rooms sustained structural damage.

Students at two schools along the Elbow River will be relocated to temporary facilities in September, if the flood-ravaged buildings can’t be repaired in time for the school year. Both Rideau Park and Elbow Park schools sustained significant damage during the June floods, said Frank Coppinger, the Calgary Board of Education superintendent for infrastructure.

The city’s public school board is warning of “major trouble” on the horizon to house students from growing communities and says it needs 25 schools built in the next five years to keep up with surging suburban enrolment. It’s an enormous $530-million demand for new schools that the Calgary Board of Education wants the province to build, detailed in an annual capital plan released Monday and that ranks communities in priority.

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